(2008). The Antarctic continent has been frequently cited as a pristine place, with a rather limited diversity of plants and animals, but with a highly diverse microbial community (Tindall, 2004). In particular, it selleck compound was reported that aquatic environments (sea, sea ice, lakes from freshwater

to highly saline) were more diverse compared with soils. However, recent applications of molecular methods have revealed a very wide diversity of microbial taxa in soil, many of which are uncultured and taxonomically unique (Cary et al., 2010; Margesin & Miteva, 2010). Thus, this continent could be considered to be of great importance for several reasons, among them because it might be regarded as a reservoir for novel genetic resources that Fluorouracil cost could be of use in the development of new biotechnological products. In addition, Antarctica might be considered a natural laboratory to understand the genetic and structural basis of adaptation of eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells to extreme conditions. This review presents recent

information about the genomic elements that have been found to act in the evolution of the Antarctic prokaryotic genomes and their potential for biotechnological exploitation. Currently, it is accepted that the notion that the Antarctic continent is a pristine environment is misleading because of the input of airborne microorganisms and the anthropogenic transport and dissemination of microorganisms, as an inevitable consequence of human presence and activity. These ‘alien’ microorganisms

do indeed influence the microbial Pyruvate dehydrogenase diversity, giving insight into the complexity of the balance between evolution, extinction, and colonization of microorganisms in this extreme environment (Vincent, 2000; Pearce et al., 2009; Cowan et al., 2011). The continent is continuously seeded by nonindigenous microorganisms including mesophilic species that, although they will probably not establish viable populations, they contribute to the environmental pool of DNA available through one of the major forces in the evolution of the prokaryotic genome, horizontal gene transfer (HGT). In addition to the intromission of ‘alien’ microorganisms, climate changes like global warming strongly affect microbial Antarctic communities. Yergeau et al. (2012) showed an increase in the abundance of fungi and bacteria and in the ratio of Alphaproteobacteria to Acidobacteria in response to experimental field warming, which might result in an increase in soil respiration. On the other hand, Jung et al. (2011) reported diminished fungal and archaeal communities in response to warming temperatures. But, whether there is an increase or decline in a group of microorganisms, the shift in Antarctic microbial communities is not in doubt.